Paddy Pimblett revealed he rejected the UFC’s advances two times before eventually joining the promotion. The former Cage Warriors champion eventually took a pay cut to join the UFC, despite these rejections.
Pimblett is now 8-1 in the UFC with one title shot under his belt. He’s on the cusp of another world title shot with a sub-minute submission over Benoit Saint-Denis at UFC 329. Fans almost saw the Brit join the UFC on two other occasions, had he not said ‘No’ three times.
Paddy Pimblett Says Waiting to Join the UFC Changed His Career
Speaking with Daniel Cormier, Pimblett said waiting to join the UFC was one of the best moves he could have made for his career.
“The close people around me, my manager and my coach—and at the time when I was 21 and I first got asked [to join UFC], I was still a baby,” Pimblett explained. “… [when I won the Cage Warriors featherweight belt] I was very small, but I was still growing.
“When I got asked the second time, I’d only just moved up to lightweight. . . I was 23 but still a baby. Never had no traps never had no muscle. . . . I wasn’t that professional back then. . . . Obviously waiting and coming on the third offer was the best thing I’ve ever done.”
Paddy Pimblett Says Joining the UFC Meant Taking Less Money
Surprisingly, almost no negotiation took place between those offers. Pimblett received the base UFC contract of $10,000 to show, $10,000 to win, despite being a high-profile debutant. This lasted for two fights before Pimblett rose to $12,000/$12,000, and so on.
“When I got offered the first contract, I got offered a new Cage Warriors deal,” Pimblett told Full Send. “And that deal was worth more than the base contract for the UFC. . . .
“When I first signed with the UFC, I took a pay cut. . . .The UFC standard deal is [$10,000/$10,000]. . . . My first two fights were [$10,000/$10,000] and then [$12,000/$12,000]. . . After I won my second fight we got a new deal and it went up.”
No Way to Determine Paddy Pimblett’s Current UFC Payouts
Pimblett has earned five $50,000 bonuses and two $100,000 bonuses in his UFC career. We can’t determine his actual payouts since UFC guards athlete salaries closely. In fact, they are deemed a ‘trade secret,’ so they don’t have to be disclosed by most sporting Athletic Commissions.
The only pay we can accurately determine is the Promotional Guidelines Compliance Pay, money given to the athletes for fulfilling their fight week obligations depending on the number of fights they have in the UFC. Pimblett has nine fights, meaning he will earn an additional $6,000 for his next fight.
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